The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
Manitoba and Saskatchewan marked United Nations World Water Day on Wednesday by recognizing the importance of improved water quality across the provinces. In Manitoba, Water Stewardship Minister Christine Melnick announced $615,000 in related investments. "Our plan to make life better for all Manitobans starts with ensuring that we protect our water," she said. Melnick said the investments will support work already underway throughout Manitoba and the Lake Winnipeg watershed. The new projects include support for a boat that conducts research on Lake Winnipeg, and for riverbank easements to provide wildlife habitat and trap nutrients that might otherwise flow into rivers. Funds will also assist the International Institute for Sustainable Develop-ment with a wetland enhancement pilot project that harvests cattails from Netley-Libau Marsh to reduce nutrient flows into Lake Winnipeg. These cattails are then used to create bio-energy. Also supported is the Prairie Provinces Water Board, for its ongoing work managing rivers and streams that flow east from Alberta and Saskatchewan into Manitoba. Finally, funding will go to the Red River Basin Commission to continue its work with residents, governments and organizations across the international basin to help improve land and water management, and water protection. "Manitoba's water, groundwater, rivers and lakes are part of our natural heritage and are vital to our future," Melnick said. Water quality In Saskatchewan, Environment Minister and Minister responsible for the Saskatchewan Watershed Authority Dustin Duncan also spoke on water quality. "From Lake Athabasca in the far north of our province, to Lake Diefenbaker in the south, the Government of Saskatchewan is taking action to protect our water," he said. "Co-operation with our neighbours and a rigorous monitoring program in Saskatchewan are two of the most important ways we can all work together to ensure our water supplies stay safe now and into the future." The province is nearing completion of a strategic monitoring plan for northern Saskatchewan watersheds, including the watershed of Lake Athabasca. Memorandum Saskatchewan is also developing a Memorandum of Understanding with Alberta to share monitoring information on water and air quality. The province has also developed the first long-term plan for water quality testing of Lake Diefenbaker, which supplies more than 50 per cent of the province's drinking water. Source-water protection plans have been completed for nine watersheds and two additional plans are being prepared. Completed plans guide work to protect surface and groundwater supplies. Meanwhile, the Saskatchewan Watershed Authority is continuing work on a Water Availability Study. This will develop information on surface and groundwater supplies needed to support sustainable water resource decisions. Saskatchewan's toilet replacement program, which began in January 2009, is believed to have conserved approximately one billion litres of water so far. Rebates for the installation of water-efficient toilets will be offered until December 31, 2012. The United Nations has designated March 22nd as World Water Day, which has been celebrated for almost two decades, to acknowledge the value of water and humanity's need to conserve it. Ð Compiled from Government of Manitoba and Government of Saskatchewan news releases.
